Students from the Two Rivers Public Charter School play with Imagination Playground blocks Thursday in the exhibit "Play Work Build" in Washington, D.C. / Kevin Allen

by Yagana Shah, USA TODAY

by Yagana Shah, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON - Parents and children may want to consider putting down the video games and picking up the building blocks. A new exhibit on playing with blocks titled "Play Work Build" opening at the National Building Museum Sunday is shedding light on the history and evolution of block play.

The exhibit, designed in collaboration with the Rockwell Group, a Manhattan-based design firm, is putting a modern spin on the age-old tradition of block play using the "Imagination Playground." The playground is a play space concept designed by Rockwell Group CEO David Rockwell that encourages free and creative play through the use of loose foam parts.

"When we first started, we just wanted to make a creative playground. But then we realized block play has a lot of benefits," says Barry Richards, principal at the Rockwell Group. "It involves cognitive development for children; it involves learning; it involves social development where they work together. So it's collaborative, social, emotional and physical." Children and adults of all ages can immerse themselves in building and creating structures with thousands of bright blue foam blocks of all shapes and sizes, and by interacting with a digital block wall.

Visitors can travel through the history of block play with the 38 sets of blocks and building systems on display, dating back as far as the 1860s, including the original Froebel blocks, to present-day Legos. Tinker Toys, alphabet blocks, Lincoln Logs and Erector sets are all on display to show the longevity of block play while also letting users explore the different tactile ways to play, says curator Sarah Leavitt.

The variety of sets exhibit the many different learning capabilities of block play, including mathematics and proportions. "You can tell a kid a math concept, but they won't grasp it until they literally are grasping it," Leavitt says. Children are encouraged to guess how many blocks it would take to build different structures from something as small as an igloo to as large as a skyscraper.

Originally developed in the 2010 redesign of a New York City playground, Imagination Playground has found its way into schools, museums, day-care centers and cities across the world. The Bay Area Discovery Museum in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York have housed the Imagination Playground, along with more than 600 sites worldwide.

Richards says parents and teachers are eager to improve the lives of children and support anything that can promote their development while keeping them engaged. Educator Kathleen Kennedy of the Two Rivers Public Charter School in Washington, D.C., says one of the most beneficial aspects of block play is problem solving. "There are no steps here. ... When you're playing a computer game, there's an answer, but with blocks you have to figure it out as you go along," Kennedy says.

Austin-based pediatrician Ari Brown, stresses the versatility of free play and developmental benefits of blocks. "You can do a whole lot of things with blocks. They come in different sizes, so you can sequence them, and colors, so you can group them," Brown says. These analytical skills carry on and help children accomplish much larger tasks as they grow older. While technology certainly has its place in play and learning, Brown says the tactile element immediate feedback children get from free play is irreplaceable. "There are several things you can reflect on a screen, but nothing is going to be able to replace a kid with two blocks in his hands."